Stranger Than He Seems
by WendyandHayden-bffs1027
Summary: What happens when a new kid comes to Hogwarts, gets more attention than Harry, and has caught the eye of the Griffindor princess Hermione? Harry falls for Hermione, but this new kid is stranger than he seems. Rated T to be safe. First fanfic!
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: Me and Hayden (co-writer) do NOT own the wonderful world of Harry Potter, we just own the plot.

A/n: This is our first fanfic, so please no flames! Now please enjoy our story!

**Stranger Then He Seems**

**Prologue:**

"Merlin, Ronald, must you always be so lazy? We're going to miss the feast!" exclaimed Harry.

The Golden Trio have been having a peaceful life in their 6th year of Hogwarts, since they've heard that Voldemort has gone into hiding. Except for the usual fights with the Slytherins, life has been treating the students well. Professor Dumbledore has informed them all of a new student transferring from Durmstrang, and will be having a welcoming feast for him.

"Alright, alright, I'm up! You're turning more like Hermione everyday, mate." Ron groaned as he threw his robe on.

As Hermione entered the room, she proclaimed, "Hey Harry, Ron. You guys are ready for the feast, right? I wonder how this new kid's going to be like..." as she gestured them to follow her to the Great Hall.

When they got there, with the company of Dean Thomas, Seamus Finnegan, Neville Longbottom, Ginny Weasley and Luna Lovegood, they saw that it had been decorated with ravishing lights that surrounded the hall.

"Alright, students, get yourselves seated, for we are about to introduce our new student." Hermione and the rest went to their respected table and wondered who this mysterious transfer was. "Now, I know that you all must be curious about who our new student is, so I will now introduce him. Now, here is..."

A/n: Aaah! A cliffy...LOL...so...do you like it?? Please review, PLEASE! Remember, it's both mine and Hayden's first fanfic, so tell us how we can make our writing better.


	2. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: We don't own Harry Potter, but if we did, it would be COOL.

A/n: I just want to thank Fire Lizard Owner and Poppins1 for being our first two reviews! We super appreciate it! Hayden gives a smile to both of you

Now, on with the story!

_Previously on Stranger Than He Seems:_

_"Now, I know that you all must be curious about who our new student is, so I will now introduce him. Now, here is..."_

**Chapter 1:**

"Now, here is our new student, Leo Dunning Steele! Let us make him welcome in his 6th year of Hogwarts!" As he said that, the doors opened gracefully to reveal an average sized teenager, with blonde hair, and stunning hazel eyes.

"Oh my Merlin! He looks DELICIOUS!" a dreamy Luna exclaimed as her eyes looked willingly at him while he passed by.

"He is HOT! I need to get at him!" Parvati and Lavender whispered to each other. It seemed that all of the girls were looking at him, except for Hermione.

"What do you guys see in him? He's probably going to be another Malfoy for all we know." Hermione told the dazed girls.

"So? Malfoy's hot too, and we all know that, even you! Oh, I hope, Leo's his name, right? Well, I hope he's in Gryffindor!" Ginny squealed with excitement.

"OUCH!" Harry yelped as he touched his scar. A couple of students stared weirdly at him, as if he was crazy.

"Harry, you alright, pal?" Ron remarked as he stared worriedly.

"Yea, I'm fine…I have a bad feeling about him for some reason…" Harry said as the pain drifted away.

"Now, now! Leo, I hope you will have a great year at Hogwarts, and we are grateful that you decided to come here. Now, as we have discussed this before, you will be in Ravenclaw. Now please go sit at your table and make some friends. Now, let the feast begin!" Dumbledore announced as food appeared on all tables.

"Oh, yes! He's in my house! I HAVE to introduce myself! Have a good feast!" Luna stated as she ran to meet this new stranger.

Ron was stuffing his face out, Hermione was arguing with Ginny about Malfoy's looks, while Harry thought, '_what could be so strange about this new kid..?_'

"Uhm, excuse me, but I am looking for Hermione Granger, the Headmaster wanted me to ask her about a tour of the school…" The voice came behind Ron, and when both Hermione and Harry turned around, they were face to face with Leo Dunning Steele.

"Ah, yes. That's me. I'm Hermione Granger, and these three are my best friends, Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and his sister, Ginny Weasley." Hermione responded as she shook hands with the foreigner.

"_Enchanté_. Now, whenever you are ready to show me around, you can come find me at…the Ravenclaw table, _d'accord_?" Leo suggested. '_Merlin, he IS hot!' _Hermione thought as she stared wonderingly at his sparkling hazel eyes.

"Oh, of course. It was a pleasure to meet you, Leo." Hermione merely said as he bowed to her and left.

"'Mione, I have a really bad feeling about this guy, and don't ask me why. My scar just started to hurt when I saw him….it was like I saw Voldemort or something…" Harry exclaimed worriedly.

"Oh, Harry. Don't worry, he's not Voldemort. Why would he waste his time to be a French teenager to go get you? Besides, he seems alright to me. But anyways, I have to go give Leo the tour, and remember the password's '_fawkes_'. And Ron? How many times have I told to you eat with your mouth closed? See you two at the common room!" and with that, she left, going to the crowded Ravenclaw table where Mr. Dunning Steele was at.

"Oi', Ron. I think we need to keep an eye on this Leo person, alright? We can't get too close or too personal with him, even if he does seem innocent."

"Harry, 'elax, bon't burry bout hib!" Ron said, with his mouth full.

"Ron, listen to Hermione for once, and keep your food in your mouth, alright?"

A/n: There you go! The official first chapter! Now, do you like it? Cookies for whoever reviews! They're chocolate chip! But seriously, please review! And remember, it's our first fanfic! (By the way, every smile face you see is from Hayden, or it's her signature, alright?) Thank you!


	3. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: We don't own Harry Potter, kk?

Authors Note: Sirius did not die in our plot, therefore he is still alive, alright? Just wanted to point that out so you guys won't get confused.

_Previously on Stranger Than He Seems:_

"_Ron, listen to Hermione for once, and keep your food in your mouth, alright?"_

**Chapter 2:**

Now, Hermione Granger has changed a bit from her previous year. After her experience in the Department of Mysteries and Sirius nearly getting killed, she spent a great deal of her summer reading more books on how to defend herself and others. It was a book that for one, actually interested Harry and Ron, so they would always stay up in their room reading it while they stayed at the Burrow. Her hair had lost most of its' bushiness, and was now a golden brown, with waves falling into place with her shoulders. She was indeed worried why Harry had a bad feeling about Leo, but she shrugged it off when she got to the Ravenclaw table, which was overly crowded as everyone went to introduce themselves to him, mostly the girls.

"Ah, Miss Granger, are you ready to show me around?" Leo asked as he tried to take himself off the rather clingy people around him, surrounding him. "I am very anxious to see this school, I read about it so much."

"Oh, you read about Hogwarts before?" Hermione's eyes glistened as she stared wonderingly at him. '_Maybe he's not going to be all that bad…_' "Anyways, it's best that I show you around right now, or else we won't have much time for you to see all of the castle." As Leo follwed her out of the Great Hall, both of them noticed that a bunch of girls stared with pure jealously at them.

"Je vous remercie de me sauver de là! I really appreciate it. Are most of these girls so clingy?" Leo wondered aloud as they started for the stairs.

" Oh, um, what was that? I don't really understand French, I'm still learning…" Hermione stammered.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I thought that someone as charming as you would understand French. I must teach you at our spare time. Unless you object, that is. I said that I was grateful that you came at that precise time to show me around." Leo replied. '_This will be easier than I thought, she's already blushing…a few more tricks and I'll have her be as clingy as those other pathetic girls…'_

"Oh, um, well, thank you. I would appreciate it if you would teach me. I went to France for summer vacation before I started my third year, and I forgot what I learned from that trip. It wasn't much, though. Anyways, these are the staircases to the classrooms and houses. I wouldn't expect you to remember most of the castle in this tour, but just try and remember some parts, because it will do you no good to get lost. Trust, me it's horrible!

"Now, this is the pathway to the greenhouses, and also for Care Of Magical Creatures class, if you're taking those two subjects. Do you know any of the professors here?" Hermione stopped to question.

"Well, I only know Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall, and I've seen some of the teachers. The classes I have are Transfiguration, Herbology, Potions, Ancient Runes, Care Of Magical Creatures, and Muggle Studies"

"Oh, I have those classes too! I can show you around and introduce you to the teachers and some of my friends if you would like!" an excited Hermione squealed.

'_Wow….he IS charming…and he has the same classes as me! I can't wait to tell Harry and Ron…maybe they'll be nice to him and won't treat him like an outsider, which is what they usually do nowadays. And Merlin knows why they're so overprotective with me all of a sudden…' _her thoughts were stopped when she accidentally bumped into Leo. "Oh, I'm sorry. I was just thinking about some stuff. Anyways, is there anything else that you would like to see before I show you to your common room?" Hermione said considerately.

"Oh, no. It's fine. I see that you're preoccupied with things, so if you can just show me to the common room, you can go back to your thoughts about your overprotective friends, Harry and Ron, I think their names are?" Leo replied.

"Oh it's fine…wait, how did you know what I was thinking?" Hermione thought suspiciously. '_Was I saying it aloud? Or is this some silly trick or something…?'_

"No, it's not a trick, and I'm a mind-reader. Not like that Professor Trelawney or whatever her name is. I can get vibes on what people are wondering about. It's something I got from my aunt." Leo simply responded, as if there was nothing wrong with his "power".

"Well, your aunt must be so proud for you to have her unique quality. Can she teach people? Or can it only come from ancestral roots?"

"My aunt was pretty excited when she discovered that I had the power. She could read peoples minds more excessively than I can. All I get are vibes, not the whole deal of what they're thinking about. And from what I know, you can only get it from your ancestors. I was the last one to get her mind-reading skills, because she got murdered by Death Eaters a few years ago." Leo responded, vaguely thinking about the day when they discovered her dead.

'_Flashback:__ As he walked to the room, he could suddenly feel a vibe of sadness and pure anger. _

_"Mom? Dad? What's wrong? Where's my aunt? Wasn't she supposed to be here?" Leo asked worriedly._

_"I'm so sorry to tell you this, Leo, but she died serving our Dark Lord. She was with Bellatrix and Lucius and Macnair…but Potter got her…and that Mudblood….she-" his mother started to say until she burst into tears again. His father went to comfort her and Leo suddenly felt the feeling of revenge come not only from his father, but from him as well._

_"Father, I will serve our Dark Lord, and make Hermione Granger pay. I will not rest until she's dead in my hands!" Leo exclaimed furiously as he got up and went to where Voldemort was residing at in the moment._

_"Ah, Mr. Steele, what a pleasant surprise. You probably come to tell me something dealing with your aunt, am I wrong?" Voldemort asked with his snake-like voice._

_"I have found out that my aunt has been murdered by Hermione Granger and Harry Potter. I come to take my aunts place as one of your followers. I will not rest until that mudblood dies, and when Potter dies from your hands. I will support you, and I will go to Hogwarts, be friend's with the mudblood, and I'll make up a plan as a go, but she will regret what she did to my aunt, that I promise, my Lord." _

_"Yes, now come here, boy. I need to give you the Dark Mark. Make sure that Granger trusts you completely and then bring here to me, and also, bring Potter with him. If anyone else comes, let them come. They will witness the death of Harry Potter, and then I will kill them all. We will make an invasion to Hogwarts and get rid of Dumbledore and all the other mudbloods and half-bloods, and it will be a world with people like us, Mr. Steele, purebloods. If you are able to make all of this come true, you will be rewarded greatly." Voldemort said as he made the Dark Mark on Leo's left arm. It burned like hell for a while, but he knew that it was worth it, since he will avenge his aunt and make his parents proud…'_

"Oh, Leo, I'm really sorry. I'm sure she was a great witch."" Hermione's words made him snap out of his thoughts and he responded by merely nodded.

"Yes, she was. But it'll all be fine sooner or later." Leo said with a smirk that could make Draco Malfoy proud.

"Oh, ok. Well, this is the Ravenclaw common room. So I hope I showed you around alright. And Professor Dumbledore said that he gave you the password already, so you'll be fine. Well, good night and I'll see you tomorrow."

"Oh yes. Thank you so much, I'll see you tomorrow." Leo said with a smile and muttered the password as he got in. Suddenly, he could hear his Lord's voice talking to him.

"_Yes, good job, Leo. You are making such a good imposter. The mudblood suspects nothing. Keep going like this and we will conquer the wizarding world.'_ He merely said as his voice drifted away as fast as it had come. _'Yeah, just a couple more months and then I will take my rightful place as my Dark Lord's second hand.' _Leo thought as he got ready to bed.

A/n: There you go! Chapter 2. Tell us what you want to happen, like events throughout the story and we can put it on the story. Please review!


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